Study suggests that middle-aged people who report that they are slow walkers could be at higher risk of heart disease compared to the general population.

Issued by the University of Leicester Press Office on 29 August 2017

A team of researchers at the NIHR Leicester Biomedical Research Centre, UK - a partnership between Leicester’s Hospitals, the University of Leicester and Loughborough University - have concluded that middle-aged people who report that they are slow walkers could be at higher risk of heart disease compared to the general population.

The data analysed was collected between 2006 and 2010 by the UK Biobank from nearly half a million middle-aged people across the UK. 420,727 people were included in the research because they were free from cancer and heart disease at the time of collecting their information.

The study is published in the European Heart Journal.

In the following 6.3 years after the data was collected there were 8598 deaths with the sample population being studied: 1654 from cardiovascular disease and 4850 from cancer.

Professor Tom Yates, a Reader in Physical Activity, Sedentary Behaviour and Health at the University of Leicester and Principal Investigator for the study, said: “Our study was interested in the links between whether someone said they walked at a slow, steady or brisk pace and whether that could predict their risk of dying from heart disease or cancer in the future.

“Slow walkers were around twice as likely to have a heart-related death compared to brisk walkers. This finding was seen in both men and women and was not explained by related risk factors such as smoking, body mass index, diet or how much television the participants in the sample watched. This suggests habitual walking pace is an independent predictor of heart-related death.

“We also found that self-reported walking pace was strongly linked to an individual’s objectively measured exercise tolerance, further suggesting walking pace is a good measure of overall physical fitness. Therefore, self-reported walking pace could be used to identify individuals who have low physical fitness and high mortality risk that would benefit from targeted physical exercise interventions.”

The research team also analysed actual handgrip strength as measured by a dynamometer to see if it was a good predictor of cancer or heart-related deaths. Handgrip strength appeared to be only a weak predictor of heart-related deaths in men and could not be generalised across the population as a whole.

Associations between self-reported walking pace and handgrip strength and cancer-related deaths were not consistent.

The paper, ‘Association of walking pace and handgrip strength with all-cause, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality: a UK Biobank observational study’ was published on 21 August 2017 in the European Heart Journal.

The NIHR Leicester Biomedical Research CentreThe National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Leicester Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) is a partnership between University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, the University of Leicester and Loughborough University. It is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR).

The NIHR Leicester BRC undertakes translational clinical research in priority areas of high disease burden and clinical need. These include cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, and lifestyle, obesity and physical activity. There is also a cross-cutting theme for precision medicine. The BRC harnesses the power of experimental science to explore and develop ways to help prevent and treat chronic disease. It brings together 70 highly skilled researchers, 30 of which are at the forefront of clinical services delivery. By having scientists working closely with clinicians, the BRC can deliver research that is relevant to patients and the professionals who treat them.

The NIHRThe National Institute for Health Research (NIHR): improving the health and wealth of the nation through research.

Established by the Department of Health, the NIHR:• funds high quality research to improve health• trains and supports health researchers• provides world-class research facilities• works with the life sciences industry and charities to benefit all• involves patients and the public at every step

About the UK BiobankUK Biobank is a national and international health resource with unparalleled research opportunities. Funded predominantly by the MRC and Wellcome Trust, the visionary study is following the lives of 500,000 participants, who joined the project from across the UK between 2006-2010. It aims to improve the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of a wide range of serious and life-threatening illnesses – including cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, arthritis, osteoporosis, depression and dementia. The resource is open to approved researchers from anywhere in the world and seeks to improve the health of future generations.